Luxury Chianti Cooking Vacations in Tuscan Villa 2024-2025

Day One

• Arrival in Florence and private transfer to the villa near Panzano in Chianti.
• On arrival at the villa you will meet your host, who will give you an introduction to your Tuscan villa cooking vacation in Chianti.
• A welcome dinner will be served and you will meet Chef Rosanna. The Chef will prepare an excellent Tuscan dinner for you to enjoy using fresh, organic products.
• Overnight.

Day Two

• Breakfast at the villa and morning at leisure to relax and enjoy the villa or the pool and gardens.
• Take a stroll into Panzano this morning to enjoy the weekly market on your own. You will  get a full immersion into the Tuscan experience, and will see the home-grown vegetables and fruits, household products and handcrafts, flowers, vegetables, and clothes that make this such a vibrant experience.
• Lunch on your own in Panzano.
• In the afternoon you will have your first hands on cooking Class at the Villa with Chef Rosanna , followed by the dinner based on your efforts.

Day Three

• Breakfast at your Tuscan villa.
• Pick up from the villa for a full day private excursion to Siena and San Gimignano. In the morning you will visit Siena, where you will meet your expert Tuscan guide, who will be with you for the whole day. You will visit the Cathedral and the Baptistery, the famous Campo Square, the Corso (the main street that crosses the historical center), and the Torre del Mangia. She will also explain about Siena’s famed Palio horserace, and you could visit the “Contrada” seats and the Palio Museum if you are interested.
• Next it is on to San Gimignano, where you will visit an organic farm that cultivates the special purple crocus flower from which saffron is harvested. The farm also produces extra virgin olive oil, vegetables, and an abundance of Tuscan herbs such as rosemary, thyme, mint, lavender, and sage. Learn about the farm’s sustainable production of the tiny red saffron threads.
• After a short tour, you will enjoy a delicious lunch served on an open terrace with a splendid view across the hills to San Gimignano and its famous towers. Your Tuscan lunch, including of course a saffron dish, will be prepared by the farm’s owner, who makes homemade pastas and uses fresh vegetables and herbs from the farm’s garden. It doesn’t get more farm to table than this!
• After the lunch, visit San Gimignano with your guide. This amazingly well-preserved medieval town is known as the “city of the fair towers,” boasting fourteen soaring towers (of the seventy-six original) that dominate the skyline.
• Transfer back to the Villa.
• Dinner on your own tonight.
• Overnight.

Day Four

• Breakfast at the villa.
• This morning your Tuscan villa culinary vacation continues with a walk, together with your guide, through the Tuscan countryside. You will visit a working farmhouse (a 10 minute walk from the villa) with 20 hectares of vineyards and 40 hectares of olive groves. Enjoy a guided tour of the wine cellar and tastings of their excellent wine and extra virgin olive oil. A light lunch will be served at the farmhouse based on typical Tuscan specialties.
• Walk a back to the villa with some time to relax before your second cooking lesson with chef, followed by the dinner.
• Overnight.

Day Five

• Breakfast at the villa.
• Your Tuscany food and wine tour today will include a full day excursion through the Chianti area. Pick up from the villa and drive along the “Chiantigiana” route, where you will explore small villages such as Montefioralle and Strada in Chianti, where you will visit an pasta factory. These pasta producers have been making pasta since 1893 and still respect the old traditions. They use the best semolina and semolato flours from carefully selected grains, milled by mills they trust, and throughout the production use very low temperatures to ensure the best final product. At the end of the production cycle, the pasta is slowly dried (from three to six days depending on the shape).
• Next, you will drive towards Volpaia Castle, and you will visit a farm that produces certified organic cheese, extra-virgin olive oil, and honey. The owner of the farm will lead you on a visit of the Caseificio, where you will have a demonstration about how Pecorino cheese is made. After the tour, you will enjoy a light lunch at the farm based on local products.
• Transfer back to Panzano. Time at leisure and dinner on your own.
• Overnight.

Day Six

• After breakfast at the villa, begin a private, full-day excursion to Montalcino, Pienza, and Montepulciano. Your Tuscany food and wine tour lead you through the breathtaking landscapes of the Orcia Valley, which is also home to superb Tuscan wines.
• You will first visit Montalcino, where you will meet uour expert guide. Montalcino is a fascinating ancient village that is best known for its red Brunello di Montalcino wines, made with Sangiovese Grosso grapes. You will have a private guided visit to a flagship wine cellar in Montalcino, complete with Tuscan wine tasting.
• Then on to Pienza, a true jewel of art, and perhaps the perfect Renaissance town. Enjoy time at leisure to explore Pienza and have lunch.
• In the afternoon, your Tuscany culinary tour carries you to Montepulciano, a small village of Etruscan origin and one of the most beautiful hill towns in Tuscany. The famed “Nobile” wines of Montepulciano were the first to be given the ultimate quality level of DOCG certification.
• Transfer back to Panzano and dinner on your own.
• Overnight.

Day Seven

• Breakfast at the villa.
• Meet your licensed tour guide for a walk of about 2 hours visiting the historical gems of Panzano in Chianti. He will introduce you to the extraordinary Romanesque Church of San Leolino and the medieval part of Panzano with its hill-top castle. For the walkers in the group, it is possible to continue on to Sant’Eufrosino, about an hour away on foot.
• Lunch on your own.
• In the afternoon you will have your third cooking lesson with chef, followed by the dinner.
• You will enjoy also a private wine tasting and masterclass at your villa with your personal sommelier Gianmaria! He is a qualified sommelier who translated his passion into knowledge thanks to an advanced qualification (Level 3 award in wine and spirits) provided by the Wine & Spirit Education Trust, which is a globally recognized institution. Enjoy a Tuscan wine tasting with such iconic wines as Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, and a Supertuscan. Enjoy some taralli and Tuscan cheeses to nibble on during the masterclass. The masterclass will be tailored to the group’s knowledge and experience, but always with a focus on Tuscan wines, Tuscan wine areas and appellations, regulations, and grape varieties. The best Tuscan wine tastings are a great chance to have fun, share laughs, and learn how to taste wine and understand it.
• Overnight.

Day Eight

• Breakfast and check out by mid-morning. Transfer to Florence airport (or to another location, on request).